Fitchburg fire victim ran back in -- 'that was the last we saw of him'

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FITCHBURG -- Those who knew Chris Brinkley will remember him as a good person who was always smiling -- and one who may have given his life in an attempt to save another. Brinkley, 22, died in a fire at 53 East. St., on Sunday night, along with his aunt, Lisa Englehart, 39.

Tiffany Dilling, a neighbor on Townsend Street, said she and her husband, Eric, met Brinkley and his grandfather, Frank Huckins Sr., a kindly veteran, when the Dillings moved to the neighborhood 14 years ago. Huckins is currently in critical condition at HealthAlliance Hospital in Leominster due to smoke inhalation.

"Frank was the first neighbor to say, 'Welcome to the neighborhood,'" Tiffany Dilling said. "That stuck with us. They were good people.

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She said she knew Brinkley since he was a kid and would see him walking his dog around the neighborhood.

"He always had a smile," Tiffany Dilling said. "I never saw him in a nasty mood. He was just a good kid."

She and her husband said they were alerted to the fire when they heard screaming coming from next door, and were shocked to open their curtains to see the house ablaze.

They said they saw Brinkley safely exit the burning home and then re-enter.

"That was the last decision he made," Eric Dilling said. "He was out of the building and he ran to go back in, presumably to help the other person that was in the house. He ran back into the basement door -- that was the last we saw of him.

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According to Brinkley's Facebook page, he attended Fitchburg High School and Shriver JobCorps in Devens, and was a member of the local band Wil Darcangelo & The Tribe.

"So sad to lose Tribe member Chris Brinkley in a fire last night," Darcangelo wrote on Facebook on Monday. "Pray for his family and for the Tribe. He was so special to us."

Leona Phaneuf said her daughter, Chellsy, 17, was in the Tribe with Brinkley, and Phaneuf became familiar with him through volunteering with the group.

Chris Brinkley, back right, with other members of Wil Darcangelo & The Tribe, a local band. PHOTO COURTESY Facebook

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"She's going to miss him, and the fun they had together," she said of Chellsy. "Definitely a great loss to the Tribe family and these kids. It's like losing a family member."

Phaneuf said Brinkley enjoyed bucket drumming, wasn't afraid to try new things, and was full of life, laughter and love.

"He was very well loved by all of us," she said. "We enjoyed having him with us, and we have a lot of memories of him we're going to keep alive."

Phaneuf said the Tribe will perform one of Brinkley's favorite songs, "Rough Stones Smooth," written by Darcangelo, at a candlelight vigil today at 7 p.m., in front of 53 East St.

Tami Arguelles, founder of Help For Our Community, said she has known the Huckins family for many years, and that she went to school with Frank Huckins Jr.

She said she and her daughter immediately went to the scene upon hearing of the fire, and a kindly neighbor opened her doors to the family to give them a warm place to stay amidst the chaos.

Arguelles said her daughter helped to take care of the young boys, while she stayed with Frank Huckins Jr. and his wife, Karen, who lost both her son, Brinkley, and her sister, Englehart, in the blaze.

"I think it's a lot of shock," Arguelles said. "It's one thing to go through a fire and lose everything, but to go through that and lose a family member and a child -- that's a whole lot of grief to endure in one night."

She said she is working with local landlords and shelters to find housing options for the family after their hotel stay, and is looking for the community to gather items they could use in an apartment.

"We really do appreciate the community coming together," Arguelles said. "The response has been great. People have been wonderful."

Julie Roy of Ginny's Helping Hands in Leominster said the Red Cross is putting the family up in a hotel for the first two nights, and she will put them up for the following two nights.

Due to Frank Huckins Sr.'s status as a veteran, the Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center and the city's Veterans Services Commissioner Michele Marino are also offering assistance to the family, according to MVOC Benefits Advisor Rachel Andler.

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